


Helpless/Satisfied

by cc tinslebee (Doitlikeagreaser)



Series: The Narrative [1]
Category: The Office (US)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Bittersweet Ending, Canon Compliant, F/M, First Meetings, Hamilton Lyrics, Implied/Referenced Past Drug Use, Inspired by Hamilton, M/M, Male-Female Friendship, Marriage, Multi, Polyamorous Character, Song: Helpless (Hamilton), Song: Satisfied (Hamilton), The Michael Scott Paper Company, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-13
Updated: 2020-03-13
Packaged: 2021-02-28 20:01:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23032909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Doitlikeagreaser/pseuds/cc%20tinslebee
Summary: The Michael Scott Paper Company mingles with the members of Dunder Mifflin at a social event and Ryan Howard introduces his friend, Pam Beesly to an impressionable young man.(AU where Pam and Ryan never worked for Dunder Mifflin in the first place, but joined the Michael Scott Paper Company instead and they meet Jim in a different way.)
Relationships: Jim Halpert & Michael Scott, Jim Halpert & Ryan Howard, Jim Halpert/Ryan Howard, Pam Beesly & Ryan Howard, Pam Beesly/Jim Halpert, Pam Beesly/Jim Halpert/Ryan Howard, Pam Beesly/Ryan Howard, Ryan Howard & Kelly Kapoor, Ryan Howard & Michael Scott
Series: The Narrative [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1689106
Comments: 4
Kudos: 26





	Helpless/Satisfied

**Author's Note:**

> Me? Writing Office fanfiction in 2020? It's more likely than you'd think.
> 
> Kudos and feedback is much appreciated, but please keep it constructive/positive! For those of you who wish to comment at the end, I have a question: is this deserving of a sequel and do you have any suggestions?

The first thing that Pam noticed was that there were a _lot_ of people. She would have never guessed that a paper company so small in comparison to Staples and other large name brands would have so many _people_. Though, she didn’t reserve the right to complain.

Dunder Mifflin was a local name if you were from Scranton; it was hard _not_ to know of it. Pam had applied for a job there several years ago as a receptionist but was turned away. The manager of the company, however, seemed to have other plans for her. Ever since the day she interviewed at Dunder Mifflin, Michael Scott seemed determined to become her friend, despite his company refusing to hire her. When the time came when Michael Scott quit his job as Regional Manager, Pam was the first person he approached to start his own company. Art school hadn’t worked out as well as she would have hoped, so Pam had no reason to turn him down. Believe her, she tried.

Tonight however, the Michael Scott Paper Company was obligated to join the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company at a social event – a party that Michael refused to miss for the world, despite the fact that none of his employees had followed him the day he left. Michael still felt a sense of loyalty to these people that Pam couldn’t quite understand. On the other hand, she did not fully understand why he felt so loyal to _her_ after only meeting her once, but she supposed that was just how Michael was. He fell hard and quickly.

The Michael Scott Paper Company entered the event together, but Michael was quick to disperse to find his ex-employees. Pam was just as quick to find a quiet place by the wall to watch the festivities. It was almost uncomfortably warm, and she decided that keeping her distance from the rest of the party goers was probably for the best.

Except for the familiar young man dancing several feet away from her. They made eye contact as she watched his bouncing from the wall. Pam laughed wholeheartedly at her friend; if there was one thing about him that was prevalent tonight, it was that he was a natural partygoer.

The song that he was bopping to eventually ended and he made his way over to where Pam stood. “Some party, huh?” He loosened his blue tie, “Is it just me, or is it hot in here?”

Ryan Howard was the third and only other employee of the Michael Scott Paper Company. Michael had met him the last time Dunder Mifflin had filed for a temp. Ryan was _supposed_ to be the Scranton branch’s temp, but the paperwork got filled out incorrectly and it wasn’t so. Like he did Pam, Michael quickly took an attachment to Ryan despite this incident. Ryan was the second person Michael went to about starting his own company.

“It’s probably just you!” Pam quipped, trying to yell over the music. Pam and Ryan had surprisingly gotten along fairly well over the last six months they had been working together; they would even dare to refer to each other as a friend, despite the difference in their personalities.

Ryan chuckled before glancing behind him and then back at Pam. “I think Michael wants to introduce us to someone he used to work with,” he stated loudly over the music. “He mentioned it in passing before he split.”

“Is that so?” Pam looked behind either side of Ryan, “I wonder who it is.”

Ryan took a drink from a nearby table and looked behind him again. “It’s probably that guy over there,” he pointed over to the tall, lanky man who was talking with Michael.

Pam followed Ryan’s gaze over to the stranger. His hair was kind of uneven and different, but he caught her eye. He seemed to have caught Ryan’s too.

“Who is he?” Pam asked. “What do you think they’re talking about?”

They watched as in the distance, Michael patted the man’s shoulder and walked away to start talking with a bespectacled man.

“Now’s our chance to find out,” Ryan answered, settling down his drink. He motioned to Pam, smiling, “I’ll be right back.”

Ryan strided across the dance floor, through the crowd, and over to the man. He came up behind him brimming with alcohol-fueled confidence, “Hello.”

The man whipped around surprised, before smiling kindly. “Hi.”

Ryan’s mouth quickly became dry. If he didn’t know any better, he would have forgotten his own name in this moment. What exactly was the game plan here?

“Can I help you…?” the man asked, once again kindly but with a hint of confusion.

“Yes, right! I’m an associate of Michael Scott; I work for the Michael Scott Paper Company,” Ryan outstretched his hand.

The man took it gladly, “Huh. Michael was just bragging about his little team to me a moment ago. It’s nice to have a face to all the hype.”

Ryan couldn’t help but smile. They shook hands and stood there for a moment before one of them spoke again.

“You strike me as a person who has never been satisfied,” the man quipped.

Ryan’s face grew heated, “I’m sure I don’t know what you mean. You forget yourself.”

“You’re like me,” the man observed. He shrugged his head wittingly, “I’m never satisfied.”

“Is that right?” Ryan bantered.

The man shrugged, “I have never been satisfied.”

Ryan recollected him and extended his hand again, upon realizing they did not have a proper introduction. “My name is Ryan Howard.”

He took Ryan’s hand in his again and shook it, smiling. “Jim Halpert.”

“Is your family from around here?” Ryan asked, interestedly.

“Unimportant,” Jim said dismissively, moving on to more relevant things. “There are a million things I want to do for this business that I’ve yet to do, but just you wait.”

Ryan was absolutely entranced by Jim. For two – maybe three – minutes, they discussed Michael and the paper industry in almost total agreement. Jim told him about some of the ideas he had for his company and Ryan introduced some of his thoughts of really bringing the paper business into the twenty-first century. While they didn’t entirely agree on everything the other said, they were respectful. Besides, they both couldn’t help but agree on everything having to do with the overzealous Michael. Talking with Jim like this was so _easy_ , it was almost exactly like his conversations with Pam: respectful, but always adding things to strengthen the other’s argument.

Eventually, Ryan looked over his shoulder to check on Pam. She was in the same spot he had left her, watching them. Their eyes locked and Pam smiled over to him with a little wave. Her eyes then shifted over to Jim and he instinctively _knew_ that look. It was the same look that he had given her when they first met, and it was probably the very same look he was giving Jim now. She looked a little helpless, like she was backed into a corner.

Ryan felt a sudden burst of confidence and took Jim’s arm in his, leading him away from the center of the room.

“Where are you taking me?” Jim asked, caught off guard.

“I’m about to change your life,” Ryan replied confidently.

Jim nodded and smiled. “Then by all means, lead the way.”

Ryan brought him over to where Pam had been standing for most of the party. He stopped and unhooked his arm.

Pam looked at Jim and then Ryan in surprised. “Pam Beesly,” she finally said to Jim, extending her hand just as Ryan had. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Jim took it and grinned at her. “Beesly?” he repeated in a nice but joking manner.

Pam began to grin as well.

“My friend and coworker,” Ryan clarified, leaning toward Jim.

“I see,” Jim said, eyes locked on Pam. “If it takes working for a paper company for us to meet, it will have been worth it,” he quipped.

Ryan smiled softly when Pam laughed. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Michael approaching the three of them. He wanted nothing more than to stay with them both, but decided it was probably best if he took one for the team. “I’ll leave you to it.”

Pam took notice and smiled at him gratefully before he left. He returned the gesture before jogging up to Michael.

He swung his arm around Michael’s shoulders and turning them away from the couple. “Michael! I’ve been looking for you everywhere! Why don’t you introduce me to one of your former employees at Dunder Mifflin?”

Michael looked over to where Jim was and opened his mouth. Ryan quickly scanned the room, before finding a distraction in a Latino man on the other side of the room. “How about him?”

Michael’s head whipped around from it’s focus on Jim to the man Ryan singled out. “Oh, you mean Oscar? Well…sure! You’re going to love this—”

“I’m sure I will, Michael,” Ryan indulged. He followed Michael but looked back at Jim and Pam, who appeared to be getting along swimmingly.

* * *

Two weeks later, Jim and Pam had been on four dates thus far. They called each other almost constantly and it was strangely convenient that miraculously the Michael Scott Paper Company was in the dingy, old walk-in closet of the same building where the Dunder Mifflin Scranton branch resided. They were both, however, very adamant about _not_ letting Michael know about their relationship for the time being. Ryan, on the other hand, was the first to know.

One of the camera men that oversaw some sort of documentation of the Dunder Mifflin employees pulled Michael out to speak with him about their recent feud with Dwight Schrute, one of the Dunder Mifflin salesmen, over clients.

“So,” Ryan tore his eyes away from his computer screen and leaned towards Pam. “How was date number five?”

“It went really well,” Pam replied, a satisfied smile on her face.

Ryan smiled softly, returning his focus to his computer screen. “That’s really great, Pam.”

“And what about you, Ryan?” Pam queried, beginning to play with his hair in a friendly manner. “Do you have your eye on anyone? That Kelly girl from upstairs seems nice. Talkative maybe, but nice.”

Ryan playfully swatted at her hand. His now blond hair was the tragic result of his recent not-quite-mid-life crisis. “Yeah, I don’t know about that… Jim says she’s kind of high maintenance and is really set on the whole cookie-cutter family life to be set in stone from the first date. I’m just not about that.” Pam nodded understandingly, but a prick of anxiety began to spike up inside of him, making Ryan uncomfortably aware of his own heartbeat. “That’s not to say that I wouldn’t be up for a good old harem,” he added quickly, only half-joking.

Pam smacked his shoulder lightly, “As if!”

Ryan chuckled and shrugged, “I’m just saying, if you really loved me, you would share him.”

“Ha!”

* * *

Six months after Jim and Pam met, they were engaged. One might say this was unnecessarily rushed, but they didn’t seem to think so. After all, they were not getting any younger and with love like _that_ , as Ryan noted, you just know. He had no doubt in his mind that Jim and Pam loved each other very much and that they were a match that was just meant to be.

Once again, Jim and Pam avoided telling Michael. However, they had actually planned on telling him this time.

Once again, Ryan was the first to know about all of this.

In the middle of the workday one day, Jim rose from his desk, and so did Pam. (Dunder Mifflin had absorbed/bought out the Michael Scott Paper Company and order had been restored. Ryan, however, was demoted back to a temp: this time, at Dunder Mifflin.) Ryan watched as Jim spoke up.

“Everybody, we have a quick announcement to make,” Jim announced to the office.

Michael, who had been bothering Erin at her desk for the past couple of minutes, looked up interested.

Jim beamed, “We’re—”

“—Engaged!” Pam finished, visibly unable to contain her excitement.

The room filled with small “Congratulations” and “That’s great news!” from various people. Michael, on the other hand, looked shellshocked, his mouth opened slightly in disbelief.

This quickly transformed into surprised delight. “Really?” he said softly.

Pam nodded excitedly and Michael, unable to contain _his_ excitement, tackled Jim to the ground in a hug.

Ryan stood up quickly from his desk and moved over to the scene. While Michael got up and hugged Pam (more tamely this time), Ryan extended his hand to Jim and helped him up.

“Thanks, man,” Jim said with a smile.

“Of course,” Ryan replied, well aware that the smile he gave back was soft.

Before Ryan had the chance to congratulate him, Michael popped back up and shook Jim’s hand. “Be true,” he said.

“I will,” replied Jim.

* * *

Jim and Pam were married eight months later. The surprise to many wasn’t that it took them two months longer than they had known each before they got engaged to get married, but that Pam was several months pregnant when it happened.

Ryan, on the other hand, was _ecstatic._ He wasn’t normally a person who liked children, but his two favorite people in the world were going to have a tiny little human of their own and that filled him with so much joy. Kelly – who he had recently began a friendship with when he started working for Dunder Mifflin – was surprised that he was the opposite jealous or heartbroken.

“That is _so_ weird, Ryan,” Kelly commented, leaning over to him as they sat together for the wedding reception. For months, she would spontaneously bring it up, fishing for the drama of it all. He didn’t have the heart to tell her there was none. “I mean, how can you be perfectly okay with this?”

He shrugged, looking over to the newly married couple. “I just am, Kelly.”

“Yeah, but aren’t you the least bit hurt?”

“No, Kelly. I’m not,” Ryan replied. His blond hair was gone, and he felt less naïve because of it. “Pam and Jim deserve to be happy and that’s exactly what they’ve found here. Besides,” he admitted, “It’s not like I’m losing them both.”

Kelly shrugged silently in defeat, which was rare for Kelly. The room quieted down as Jim stood up.

“Alright, alright. That’s what I’m talking about,” Jim joked. “Now, give it up for the man of honor: Ryan Howard!”

Ryan rose, flashing a smile towards Jim. He knew that Pam and Jim originally planned on eloping. He was always the first one to know about these kinds of things. Somewhere along the line, they had decided against it and Ryan was again the first to know. Still set on being non-traditional, Pam asked him to be her _man_ of honor. He couldn’t say no to her.

Ryan lifted his glass, which contained no champagne. Neither did Pam’s. After all, she was pregnant and he was sober; Ryan had no need or _want_ to be in an intoxicated state today either, once again to Kelly’s shock.

“A toast to the groom,” Ryan beamed, tilted his glass. “And to the bride.”

He heard a few Dunder Mifflin Scranton employees cheer at another table.

“From your friend,” he continued, followed by Michael shouting “Ryan!” from the other side of the room, “Who is always by your side.”

Pam grinned and Ryan raised his glass higher, “To your union, and the hope that you provide.” Ryan looked to Jim with a kind and witty smile, “May you always be satisfied.”

Jim returned the smile, knowingly, raising his glass to his toast.

Ryan took a sip of his drink and returned to his seat. Before Kelly had the chance to open her mouth, Ryan spoke. “And I know, she’ll be happy as his wife and he, her husband.”

Kelly nodded, expecting him to continue. “And you know—”

 _They will never be satisfied._ “I will never be satisfied,” Ryan confessed, half-heartedly.

She let him rest his head against her shoulder. Ryan didn’t think he could ever love Kelly the way he loved Pam and Jim, but she was a good friend to him. In all honesty, he didn’t think he could ever love _anyone_ the way he loved them. In a weird way, he _felt_ married to them both in his soul or something, but that was it. That was all it was meant to be. The rest just wasn’t meant for him. At least he kept them both in his life. He found solace in that.


End file.
